I am back from Taipei and Fashion: Sustainability and Creativity, from what was simply a fantastic conference. Thank you to the organizers - not just for the quality and richness of the papers but also for the other activities throughout the three days. I was going to post a full report on the conference here, but since I've just posted a report on my top three papers on 560: Magazine for Parsons School of Fashion, it's easier to simply link there.
In addition to the three papers by Holly McQuillan, Daniel James Cole and Patricia Lockren, I'd like to commend and briefly comment on the following papers:
Katherine Townsend & Yumi Chon, Nottingham Trent University:
Remaining Beauty: A Sustainable Approach to Surface Pattern Design
Chon was not able to come to the conference but Townsend presented Chon's work in a beautiful light.
Yu Han Au, Joe Au & Raymond Au, Hong Kong Polytechnic University:
Development of Theoretical Framework of Ultimate Fashion and Textile Design Process Model
Having read most of Joe Au's papers on fashion design process, it was exciting to hear from one of his research students - in short, it is good to see rigorous research into fashion design process. This may have changed, but a couple of years ago a read-through of the keywords for Design Studies, one of the key journals for design research, did not include fashion design while around 20 other design disciplines made it.
Kritika Dawar, Pearl Academy of Fashion:
Collaborative Efforts Towards Sustainability
Dawar reported on Shared Talent, a heart-warming collaboration between six Indian and six UK designers, and students from India, UK and the Netherlands. I was so immersed in listening that my notes were somewhat brief, but here's a tidbit: "Sustainability need not compromise creativity or quality."
Kathryn Brownbridge, Manchester Metropolitan University:
The Impact of Advanced Knitwear Technology: Fashion, Sustainability and Innovation.
Brownbridge presented interesting findings from three UK companies that had implemented complete garment technology. It certainly sounded like the investment paid off for all three. This was Kathryn's first conference presentation; if the moderator hadn't said so, we would have never known. Congratulations!
Patricia Brien, RMIT:
Imagination, Inspiration, Imitation: A Preliminary Exploration of Rudolf Steiner's Theories. Holistic Clothing and Sustainable Fashion Design
Perhaps the most left-of-centre paper I heard - in a good way: so rich and interesting. Brien made an interesting link between Rudolf Steiner, Joseph Beuys and AF Vandevorst. I hope Brien continues with this endeavour.
Ok, I missed the following two; it was so difficult to have to choose between six parallel sessions. Yes, six. I can cope with three or four but at times I wanted to go and see all six at the same time. I should note that Holly, Todd and Kate had their presentations at the same time and I went to Holly's, hence missing these two.
Todd Robinson, University of Technology Sydney:
Thematizing Change: Creativity, Dynamic Practices and Sustainability
Todd is a former colleague whose PhD project is promising to be of great interest. Watch out.
Kate Fletcher, London College of Fashion:
Systems Change for Sustainability in Fashion.
Kate wasn't in Taiwan to present; instead, Helen Thomas presented for her. Kate discusses systems change in her book and I would have loved to have heard where she's at with this, but I will have to wait until next time.
IFM will host the conference next year. The race is on, folks; to top the calibre of papers from 2010 will be a truly exciting challenge!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Craft Research
I'm at the IFFTI conference in Taiwan; a report of the excellent two days to come soon. In the meanwhile, I just wanted to flag a promising new journal edited by Kristina Niedderer and Katherine Townsend: Craft Research from Intellect Ltd. It was a pleasure to meet Katherine and hear about the journal. From the website:
Aims and Scope
Craft Research is the first peer-reviewed academic journal dedicated to developing and advancing contemporary craft practice and theory through research. Its purpose is to portray and build the crafts as a vital and viable discipline that offers a vision for the future through its ability to explore and challenge technology, to question and develop cultural and social practices, and to interrogate and affirm philosophical and human values.
Call for Papers
Craft Research welcomes contributions from new and established researchers, scholars, and professionals around the world who wish to make a contribution to advancing the crafts.
Contributions may include research into materials, technology, processes, methods, concepts, aesthetic and philosophy in any discipline area of the applied arts and crafts, including craft education. Accepted formats include full research papers, position papers, reports on research linking craft and industry, craft-researcher portraits, and reviews of research exhibitions and conferences.
Monday, February 08, 2010
The GreenShows at New York fashion week
Work commitments permitting, I'll be attending some of the GreenShows during fashion week. The designers/companies featured this time around are:
Gary Harvey
Vaute Couture
Sonja den Elzen
Joann Berman
Keia Pounds
Popomomo
Samantha Pleet
deux fm
Ekovaruhuset
C. Marchuska
Having looked through the sites of each, the diversity of approaches and aesthetics is great to see. It's also good to remember these aren't the only labels a buyer or a journalist should seek out if his/her interest is sustainability. For example, Study NY and Titania Inglis are absolute musts on the list. I'd like to wish all the best in the final preparations and most importantly, orders orders orders!
Gary Harvey
Vaute Couture
Sonja den Elzen
Joann Berman
Keia Pounds
Popomomo
Samantha Pleet
deux fm
Ekovaruhuset
C. Marchuska
Having looked through the sites of each, the diversity of approaches and aesthetics is great to see. It's also good to remember these aren't the only labels a buyer or a journalist should seek out if his/her interest is sustainability. For example, Study NY and Titania Inglis are absolute musts on the list. I'd like to wish all the best in the final preparations and most importantly, orders orders orders!
Friday, February 05, 2010
dry ice
As I've mentioned here a number of times before, freezers aren't only good for storing vodka. They can also be used to delay the need for laundering jeans, and a whole lot of other garments. I had a chuckle this morning; TreeHugger has finally caught on to this, too. Or rather, a Brazilian denim brand, Tristar, is using it as a marketing gimmick. People, amazingly this works on jeans of any brand; if you haven't tried it yet, do. As some of my earlier posts note, eventually you do reach a point of saturation (depending on how often you wear the jeans and how many wobbly friends have spilled a drink on you) where laundering becomes a social necessity. Nevertheless, I've been freezing jeans for well over two years and it works. Give it a go. A word of warning: in certain climates, say like in New York, it's worth taking the jeans out of the freezer at least half an hour before you plan to put them on. Makes the morning much more pleasant.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion, and The Sustainability Equation: Ethics and Aesthetics in Contemporary Fashion
Congratulations to Francesca Granata and Sarah Scaturro for last night's panel, The Sustainability Equation: Ethics and Aesthetics in Contemporary Fashion. The room was packed, lined with people standing, and the insights from Julie Gilhart, Senior Vice President and Fashion Director at Barneys New York, Mary Ping of Slow Steady Wins the Race and Caroline Priebe of Uluru were diverse and fascinating. As an unexpected delight, I bumped into Janet Hethorn, one of the editors of Sustainable Fashion: Why Now? It was good to see Tara St James of Study NY again; the blog post on her work is now long, long overdue. Watch this space.
My notes from the panel ramble all over the place. Furthermore, at times I was listening too intensely to take any. Both signs of an invigorating conversation, I think. Gilhart spoke about the philosophy at Barneys, and the importance of an emotional connection to clothing over product or brand. From a sustainable design perspective, she made a strong case for good design and embodied value as the most important drivers. I'd agree; we've all seen abominable things made from organic cotton, no? Thankfully it's becoming rarer but for a while there seemed to be a lot of things out there that used sustainability as some kind of apologetic excuse for sloppy design and/or crappy manufacturing. Julie mentioned how the Barneys customer is still slightly suspicious of anything labeled organic; at least in some cases the company no longer promotes garments as such, but rather, as strong statements in design. That's what attracts the customer to the clothes in the first place. Common sense, really. Apparently they are getting increasing requests for 'green' gowns for the red carpet. She recommends Isabel Toledo. Not an obvious choice to some but one that made sense to me. Toledo's work has a lovely timelessness about it, without ever appearing generic or 'classic'. Or maybe it is classic; it's just not a word I particularly like. My personal favourite statement from Gilhart, one that gives me much hope, was a quip on how at Barneys they are constantly saying how there are just "too many collections, too many clothes, too much stuff".Right on.
Caroline's notion of wanting to design things that the consumer can eventually pass on to her granddaughter sounds deceivingly simple but think about it. It's a powerful statement. Instead of maybe two, three, even five years' worth of wear, she's suggesting several decades. This stems from her having inherited her grandmother's cashmere cardigans, which she wears herself. She has also reappropriated some of her grandmother's patterns for Uluru. Caroline also talked about the need to integrate sustainability into business models from the outset, something she has done. At Fashioning Now, Rachel Bending of Bird Textile spoke along very similar lines; the audio is available on the FN website. As for the Uluru/Alabama Chanin interaction, Caroline prefers co-operation over collaboration; the former speaks of a sustained activity whilst the latter can suggest something temporary. She also noted how she seems to share everything she knows with anyone that wants to know. This is what I love about the sustainable fashion community; the secrecy and paranoia that seem to afflict the rest of industry are largely absent.
As for Mary, I think she should work with me. Why? Towards the end she spoke of having produced some leather t-shirts, and as a result she's ended up with five containers of leather scrap (size of container unclear). "It's such a waste", she said. Yes. Mind you, her team is working on designing something out of the scrap, but leather is one area I haven't delved into in my research. Mary, I'm likely to be in touch. I know I already linked to Slow and Steady Wins the Race above but because the site is such fun, here is the link again. On the whole, listening to both Caroline and Mary was a refreshing delight; reading through mainstream fashion sites it's easy to break out in hives over the banal soundbites from some fashion designers.
Onto the exhibition, which I saw over a week ago. It is open until February 20, so make sure you see it if in New York. The beautiful catalog is only $10; get it! The exhibition is beautifully designed, with large text panels supporting each of the three sections. The design is by a team of Graduate Interior Design students from Pratt, led by Professor Jon Otis. The designers are Lexie Averick, Yi-Ting (Elvie) Chang, Laura Clifford, Jenni Hellstern, Amanda Meininger, Megan Niemczyk, Alex Pethtel, Juliette Pousset, Dena Saperstein, Jeehee Son, Jinwooh Song and Jordan Wagenseller. Congratulations; the space was a delight to move through. There are three broad themes under which the designers fall; of course, most relate to all three categories, but such ordering makes the concepts easier to understand. Because I'm lazy, here are the panels for you to read, and some not-great photos; a close friend once said I destroy beautiful things with photography. My photography lecturer over ten years ago echoed those sentiments. Anyway, here you go:
Reduce:
Uluru with Alabama Chanin: Detail of a recycled cashmere sweater appliqued with organic cotton jersey:
Rogan, one of the Loomstate designers: detail of patchwork dress of recycled denim, courtesy of Barneys New York:
Rethink
Slow and Steady Wins the Race: detail of a shirt:
Kelly Cobb's 100-Mile Suit: feelers for some of the yarns and fabrics:
Revalue
SUNO (detail of dress of vintage kanga):
Alabama Chanin: Detail of an organic cotton jersey dress:
An organic cotton denim dress, dyed with natural indigo:
Finally, an audience member mentioned an 'eco-fashion' show taking place at NYU tonight. More details are here.
My notes from the panel ramble all over the place. Furthermore, at times I was listening too intensely to take any. Both signs of an invigorating conversation, I think. Gilhart spoke about the philosophy at Barneys, and the importance of an emotional connection to clothing over product or brand. From a sustainable design perspective, she made a strong case for good design and embodied value as the most important drivers. I'd agree; we've all seen abominable things made from organic cotton, no? Thankfully it's becoming rarer but for a while there seemed to be a lot of things out there that used sustainability as some kind of apologetic excuse for sloppy design and/or crappy manufacturing. Julie mentioned how the Barneys customer is still slightly suspicious of anything labeled organic; at least in some cases the company no longer promotes garments as such, but rather, as strong statements in design. That's what attracts the customer to the clothes in the first place. Common sense, really. Apparently they are getting increasing requests for 'green' gowns for the red carpet. She recommends Isabel Toledo. Not an obvious choice to some but one that made sense to me. Toledo's work has a lovely timelessness about it, without ever appearing generic or 'classic'. Or maybe it is classic; it's just not a word I particularly like. My personal favourite statement from Gilhart, one that gives me much hope, was a quip on how at Barneys they are constantly saying how there are just "too many collections, too many clothes, too much stuff".Right on.
Caroline's notion of wanting to design things that the consumer can eventually pass on to her granddaughter sounds deceivingly simple but think about it. It's a powerful statement. Instead of maybe two, three, even five years' worth of wear, she's suggesting several decades. This stems from her having inherited her grandmother's cashmere cardigans, which she wears herself. She has also reappropriated some of her grandmother's patterns for Uluru. Caroline also talked about the need to integrate sustainability into business models from the outset, something she has done. At Fashioning Now, Rachel Bending of Bird Textile spoke along very similar lines; the audio is available on the FN website. As for the Uluru/Alabama Chanin interaction, Caroline prefers co-operation over collaboration; the former speaks of a sustained activity whilst the latter can suggest something temporary. She also noted how she seems to share everything she knows with anyone that wants to know. This is what I love about the sustainable fashion community; the secrecy and paranoia that seem to afflict the rest of industry are largely absent.
As for Mary, I think she should work with me. Why? Towards the end she spoke of having produced some leather t-shirts, and as a result she's ended up with five containers of leather scrap (size of container unclear). "It's such a waste", she said. Yes. Mind you, her team is working on designing something out of the scrap, but leather is one area I haven't delved into in my research. Mary, I'm likely to be in touch. I know I already linked to Slow and Steady Wins the Race above but because the site is such fun, here is the link again. On the whole, listening to both Caroline and Mary was a refreshing delight; reading through mainstream fashion sites it's easy to break out in hives over the banal soundbites from some fashion designers.
Onto the exhibition, which I saw over a week ago. It is open until February 20, so make sure you see it if in New York. The beautiful catalog is only $10; get it! The exhibition is beautifully designed, with large text panels supporting each of the three sections. The design is by a team of Graduate Interior Design students from Pratt, led by Professor Jon Otis. The designers are Lexie Averick, Yi-Ting (Elvie) Chang, Laura Clifford, Jenni Hellstern, Amanda Meininger, Megan Niemczyk, Alex Pethtel, Juliette Pousset, Dena Saperstein, Jeehee Son, Jinwooh Song and Jordan Wagenseller. Congratulations; the space was a delight to move through. There are three broad themes under which the designers fall; of course, most relate to all three categories, but such ordering makes the concepts easier to understand. Because I'm lazy, here are the panels for you to read, and some not-great photos; a close friend once said I destroy beautiful things with photography. My photography lecturer over ten years ago echoed those sentiments. Anyway, here you go:
Reduce:
Uluru with Alabama Chanin: Detail of a recycled cashmere sweater appliqued with organic cotton jersey:
Rogan, one of the Loomstate designers: detail of patchwork dress of recycled denim, courtesy of Barneys New York:
Rethink
Slow and Steady Wins the Race: detail of a shirt:
Kelly Cobb's 100-Mile Suit: feelers for some of the yarns and fabrics:
Revalue
SUNO (detail of dress of vintage kanga):
Alabama Chanin: Detail of an organic cotton jersey dress:
An organic cotton denim dress, dyed with natural indigo:
Finally, an audience member mentioned an 'eco-fashion' show taking place at NYU tonight. More details are here.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Reminder: Pratt Manhattan Gallery tonight
Update: Just got an email, the catalog is now available. At $10, thanks to a generous grant from The Coby Foundation, it's a no-brainer.
This is on tonight, I hope to see you there:
“The Sustainability Equation: Ethics and Aesthetics in Contemporary Fashion” 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 26 Pratt Manhattan Gallery 144 West 14th Street, 2nd Floor Regular Gallery Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
This is on tonight, I hope to see you there:
“The Sustainability Equation: Ethics and Aesthetics in Contemporary Fashion” 6 p.m. Tuesday, January 26 Pratt Manhattan Gallery 144 West 14th Street, 2nd Floor Regular Gallery Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
BBC article on waste
An interesting read on waste 'trends' in the UK that draws from an EFRA Committee report; kudos to the authors for referring to the 'Primark effect'. Yes, it's a good thing; the more exposure for the term, the more likely some changes are likely to begin taking place. Of course it is a worry that while the overall amount of household waste has decreased, the amount of textile waste has in fact increased. And while recycling is better than landfilling, reducing and reusing are key. Remember? Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Recycling is third on the list, but seems to be the only one on most people's minds. Here's a suggestion for reducing: instead of buying five whatevers from H&M*, Primark or Zara, pool the money together and buy one good thing from a local business. To those old-fashioned folks overly concerned with economic growth, reducing doesn't necessarily have to mean a reduction in the amount of dosh making the rounds.
The full EFRA Committee report is available here
*I should disclose that I in fact own four H&M whatevers. I have a belt I bought in 2005 (I bought two at the time but the other one broke beyond repair), and three identical black v-neck t-shirts. How very Armani-on-the-cheap of me. About two months ago, a friend was about to donate them; he bought them in May, only to realize afterwards he didn't like them. I love my friend, despite the fact I don't understand the decision-making process leading up to the purchase. At $8 a pop, not much decision-making was required, of course. Anyway, I tried one on, it fit well so I got them. The hems twisted in the first wash but I can live with that. The fabric will last a year at most. This often comes as a surprise to non-Scandinavians but back in the 80s, H&M was still known for quality clothes at a reasonable price. Now... Well, Google them with The New York Times.
The full EFRA Committee report is available here
*I should disclose that I in fact own four H&M whatevers. I have a belt I bought in 2005 (I bought two at the time but the other one broke beyond repair), and three identical black v-neck t-shirts. How very Armani-on-the-cheap of me. About two months ago, a friend was about to donate them; he bought them in May, only to realize afterwards he didn't like them. I love my friend, despite the fact I don't understand the decision-making process leading up to the purchase. At $8 a pop, not much decision-making was required, of course. Anyway, I tried one on, it fit well so I got them. The hems twisted in the first wash but I can live with that. The fabric will last a year at most. This often comes as a surprise to non-Scandinavians but back in the 80s, H&M was still known for quality clothes at a reasonable price. Now... Well, Google them with The New York Times.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Sample sale Friday 29 January 2010 at Tribeca Grand Hotel
[Updated Monday 25 January- see bottom of post; thank you Deanne of Dream Sequins!]
A group of fashion, jewelry and homewares designers, some of whose design practices are fundamentally informed by sustainability, is having a sample sale at the Tribeca Grand Hotel. The details are:
Date: Friday 29 January 2010
Time: 5-9pm
The designers:
ULURU
Bliss Lau
Doo.ri
H. Fredriksson
Ideeën
Kim Seybert
Mary Meyer
Meg Cohen
Risto
Secta
Study NY by Tara St. James
My thoughts on these things? By finding a treasure or three at sample sales such as this, you generally support small, local businesses; at any time a good thing but even more so at times like these. And treasures they often are; it's not unusual to find a sample that never made it to production - a one-off that nobody else has. Back in the day, this is how I sent my samples and excess stock out into the world. Not by incinerating, because that's, well, insane.
And here's the update, and what makes this even better than it already is: 20% of the proceeds of the sale go towards supporting APEX, a nonprofit that provides educational mentoring to inner city youth And, in case you can't make it to TriBeCa on Friday, Cutdrop is hosting an online pre-sale of select designers starting Wednesday January 27th and ending on Friday January 29th. My thanks to Dream Sequins for the update!
A group of fashion, jewelry and homewares designers, some of whose design practices are fundamentally informed by sustainability, is having a sample sale at the Tribeca Grand Hotel. The details are:
Date: Friday 29 January 2010
Time: 5-9pm
The designers:
ULURU
Bliss Lau
Doo.ri
H. Fredriksson
Ideeën
Kim Seybert
Mary Meyer
Meg Cohen
Risto
Secta
Study NY by Tara St. James
My thoughts on these things? By finding a treasure or three at sample sales such as this, you generally support small, local businesses; at any time a good thing but even more so at times like these. And treasures they often are; it's not unusual to find a sample that never made it to production - a one-off that nobody else has. Back in the day, this is how I sent my samples and excess stock out into the world. Not by incinerating, because that's, well, insane.
And here's the update, and what makes this even better than it already is: 20% of the proceeds of the sale go towards supporting APEX, a nonprofit that provides educational mentoring to inner city youth And, in case you can't make it to TriBeCa on Friday, Cutdrop is hosting an online pre-sale of select designers starting Wednesday January 27th and ending on Friday January 29th. My thanks to Dream Sequins for the update!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
for those in London: MA Fashion & the Environment at SHIFT
MA_10 /
EXHIBITION
MA FASHION & THE ENVIRONMENT
MONDAY 1 FEBRUARY
PRIVATE VIEW & PRESENTATION TO PRESS, INDUSTRY, TUTORS AND STUDENTS / 13.00 – 16.00
FRIDAY 29 JANUARY – MONDAY 1 FEBRUARY
PUBLIC VIEW / FRIDAY 17.30 – 22.30 / SATURDAY - MONDAY 12.00 – 16.00
You are invited to see, hear and participate in creative provocations by graduates of MA Fashion and the Environment.
This exhibition is brought to you by the Centre for Sustainable Fashion & London College of Fashion as part of SHIFT – a festival from Cape Farewell.
Included in the exhibition:
highlights from Fashioning the Future 2009, the international student awards for sustainability in fashion.
Local Wisdom by Kate Fletcher, an opportunity for you to share the story of a favourite garment.
QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL FOYER
SOUTHBANK CENTRE
BELVEDERE ROAD
LONDON SE1 8XX
PLEASE RSVP:
EVENTS@FASHION.ARTS.AC.UK
MORE INFORMATION:
WWW.SUSTAINABLE-FASHION.COM/SHIFT
Friday, January 15, 2010
Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion
Tomorrow I'm checking out Ethics + Aesthetics = Sustainable Fashion at the Pratt Manhattan Gallery at 144 West 14th Street, on the second floor. The exhibition is curated by Francesca Granata and Sarah Scaturro, and features work by Bodkin, Alabama Chanin, Susan Cianciolo, Kelly Cobb, Loomstate, Rogan, Max Osterweis/ Zoë Sheehan Saldaña, SANS, Slow and Steady Wins the Race, Uluru, and Andrea Zittel and Tiprin Follett/Smockshop. (I'm not 100% sure about the accuracy of the links; if I've made a boo-boo, do let me know.)
Related to the exhibition, at 6pm on Tuesday 26th January there is a free panel discussion moderated by the curators. Confirmed speakers include Julie Gilhart, senior vice president, fashion director of Barneys New York; Mary Ping, designer and founder of Slow and Steady Wins the Race, and Caroline Priebe, designer and founder of Uluru. I hope to see you there!
Related to the exhibition, at 6pm on Tuesday 26th January there is a free panel discussion moderated by the curators. Confirmed speakers include Julie Gilhart, senior vice president, fashion director of Barneys New York; Mary Ping, designer and founder of Slow and Steady Wins the Race, and Caroline Priebe, designer and founder of Uluru. I hope to see you there!
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
New York Times follow-up
It turns out Jim Dwyer from the New York Times followed up his earlier story on mutilated new clothes. More on the New York City Clothing Bank on their own website. An inspiring story.
I have an exciting meeting today related to this; when the time is right, I'll post more here.
I have an exciting meeting today related to this; when the time is right, I'll post more here.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
H&M shame
For most people this is old news - a week old - but I wasn't paying much attention last week, what with looking for an apartment and getting to know my way around. The New York Times published an article about the practice of companies destroying brand new, out-of-season clothes. The thinking behind the practice, I believe, is that donating unsold garments to charity, for example, would damage the brand. Apparently the best thing to do is to destroy the garments. Funny how the world sometimes works in reverse. The companies in this case were H&M and Wal-Mart but the practice is widespread and not limited to the US. Back in Sydney, more than once I heard of a facility near Tempe Tip, where brands could bury unworn, unsold stock. If you know anything about it, please email me; I've never managed to find out more about this, but have heard the rumour more than once.
H&M responded very quickly, stating this practice would stop. Shame nevertheless that it happened in the first place. This is one of the more sickening examples of waste in the society we've created. I do hope that other brands take note and likewise cease doing this, and donate the clothes to those that need them (no shortage there).
For reasons I won't say just yet, this is a topic I'll likely return to soon, so stay tuned.
H&M responded very quickly, stating this practice would stop. Shame nevertheless that it happened in the first place. This is one of the more sickening examples of waste in the society we've created. I do hope that other brands take note and likewise cease doing this, and donate the clothes to those that need them (no shortage there).
For reasons I won't say just yet, this is a topic I'll likely return to soon, so stay tuned.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Red Carpet Green Dress
The Red Carpet Green Dress only came to my attention today; moving continents tends to make one not notice stuff. If any aspiring fashion designer out there wants to enter, as long as you're 18 and have $50 to spare, you can. I love that you don't need to be enrolled in a course to enter, so often a condition in competitions, but I do not love the fee. Of course I am completely clueless as to the the financial arrangement between The King of the World and Mrs Cameron (and prefer to remain that way) but let's assume both are comfortable. Millionaire if not billionaire comfortable, at least. Of course most fashion design competitions of this kind incur a fee, part of which goes into the jurying process - convening and reimbursing the panel, that sort of thing. There is only one person on this particular jury, so I am having trouble seeing how one person choosing one dress (as opposed to an extensive panel picking over whole collections, as the case might be with Mittelmoda) requires such a sum. A more cynical person might suggest it goes towards paying for the dress itself, to be realized by Deb Scott. I would urge the organizers to perhaps explain this more on the website.
Amendment: I've just read the rules. The money will go towards MUSE Elementary. Nevertheless, I feel that this sum might deny the next Madeleine Vionnet from entering the competition merely for financial reasons. In an otherwise refreshingly democratic competition, it's the one thing that makes it not so.
When it comes to sustainability, I have no doubt the intent is 100% well-meaning but could be thought through better. After all, this is a dress that will get worn for a few hours only. It's a fair chunk of cash, time, effort and flights for one dress. (And yet I can't help hoping someone from Sri Lanka wins, as unlikely as that may be.) The more sustainable option would be to wear something one already has, or if that won't do, have something one already has altered. By Deb Scott or even a non-Academy-Award-winning designer. To most celebrities, it would seem, there is hardly anything more disposable than a red carpet dress, although I acknowledge the very well meant intent here: wider exposure of sustainable fashion design. It's just that materials choice alone doesn't make something automatically a sustainable design. What I'd love to see afterwards is an eBay auction of the dress, and using the proceeds to reimburse all the entrants their fifty bucks. The first choice of material, as reminiscent of Lizzy Gardiner's efforts as it may sound, would of course be broken Titanic DVDs. Remember Titanic? The only time I ever came out of a cinema and the seasons had changed. Thankfully modern technology can provide us with a summary version:
Amendment: I've just read the rules. The money will go towards MUSE Elementary. Nevertheless, I feel that this sum might deny the next Madeleine Vionnet from entering the competition merely for financial reasons. In an otherwise refreshingly democratic competition, it's the one thing that makes it not so.
When it comes to sustainability, I have no doubt the intent is 100% well-meaning but could be thought through better. After all, this is a dress that will get worn for a few hours only. It's a fair chunk of cash, time, effort and flights for one dress. (And yet I can't help hoping someone from Sri Lanka wins, as unlikely as that may be.) The more sustainable option would be to wear something one already has, or if that won't do, have something one already has altered. By Deb Scott or even a non-Academy-Award-winning designer. To most celebrities, it would seem, there is hardly anything more disposable than a red carpet dress, although I acknowledge the very well meant intent here: wider exposure of sustainable fashion design. It's just that materials choice alone doesn't make something automatically a sustainable design. What I'd love to see afterwards is an eBay auction of the dress, and using the proceeds to reimburse all the entrants their fifty bucks. The first choice of material, as reminiscent of Lizzy Gardiner's efforts as it may sound, would of course be broken Titanic DVDs. Remember Titanic? The only time I ever came out of a cinema and the seasons had changed. Thankfully modern technology can provide us with a summary version:
Saturday, January 09, 2010
NYC
So, I managed to change the profile just before I flew out of Sydney: I am indeed in New York now, and started a new job this week. I'd like to pass my heartfelt thanks to colleagues at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), for seven amazing years. I'd also like to pay tribute to Val Horridge, who left at the same time as me, after 22 years at UTS. Val taught me (and most of the Sydney fashion industry, I think) way back when, and it has been a privilege to come back and work with her. I look forward to hearing about her next adventures. Again, thank you, all the lovely people at UTS. I hope our paths continue crossing in the future.
This week I am meeting with Tara St James of Study NY and Caroline Priebe of Uluru; both are involved in 5 in 1, a design collective based in Brooklyn, not far from where I've found my first NYC home. I've been meaning to blog about Tara's work since she emailed me shortly after the last NY fashion week, but as is evident from the blog, I haven't blogged at all since the dust storm. (I clearly survived it; I wish I could say the same about my workload over the past four or five months.) Anyway, I very much look forward to meeting both. In a not-so-unexpected coincidence, Lynda Grose suggested just a few days ago that I get in touch with Caroline, only a few days after Tara had passed her details onto me.
In other news, Fashioning Now will be traveling to the Fremantle Arts Centre later this year, and Alison Gwilt and I are working hard on the book. As publication dates firm up, I'll post them (tentatively) here. If I've learned one thing about how these things work, it's that any dates regarding publication should always be treated with somewhat flexible eyes...
Finally (though there is so much I could write about after such a long break), thanks once again to the Fashion & Textiles program at UTS. My farewell present from the team was two scarves hand-woven by Liz Williamson, which I absolutely love. If you're unfamiliar with her scarves, find them and check them out. You will have them for life. I now have four. Thank you.
More soon. Thank you NYC for the warmest welcome!
This week I am meeting with Tara St James of Study NY and Caroline Priebe of Uluru; both are involved in 5 in 1, a design collective based in Brooklyn, not far from where I've found my first NYC home. I've been meaning to blog about Tara's work since she emailed me shortly after the last NY fashion week, but as is evident from the blog, I haven't blogged at all since the dust storm. (I clearly survived it; I wish I could say the same about my workload over the past four or five months.) Anyway, I very much look forward to meeting both. In a not-so-unexpected coincidence, Lynda Grose suggested just a few days ago that I get in touch with Caroline, only a few days after Tara had passed her details onto me.
In other news, Fashioning Now will be traveling to the Fremantle Arts Centre later this year, and Alison Gwilt and I are working hard on the book. As publication dates firm up, I'll post them (tentatively) here. If I've learned one thing about how these things work, it's that any dates regarding publication should always be treated with somewhat flexible eyes...
Finally (though there is so much I could write about after such a long break), thanks once again to the Fashion & Textiles program at UTS. My farewell present from the team was two scarves hand-woven by Liz Williamson, which I absolutely love. If you're unfamiliar with her scarves, find them and check them out. You will have them for life. I now have four. Thank you.
More soon. Thank you NYC for the warmest welcome!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Julien Macdonald's YSL 'homage'
Browsing through style.com as I usually do during the shows, I noticed something very familiar about Julien Macdonald's use of sequins in a fish scale pattern:
(Above images from style.com)
They reminded me of a 1983 dress by Yves Saint Laurent, sometimes referred to as the sardine dress, in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. A dress that looks like this:
(Page 94 from 'Haute Couture' by Richard Martin and Harold Koda, published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.)
My educated guess would be that the sequin work would have been done by Lesage, and their archives probably are open to designers - does anyone know more about how that works? I am somewhat torn on this; on one hand, I think any designer championing the haute couture crafts of France deserves a pat on the back, and on the other, as a designer I would never use a source so literally. Not knowingly, anyway. I do recall one instance of pretty much copying the cut of a Miyake jacket in my final year; I realised what I'd done two days before the work was due and wanted to bin it. In the end I didn't after having chatted to my tutor, who probably thought all the tears were a bit of an over-reaction.
This reminds me of another instance of a contemporary designer using a constructed textile design pretty much as is, even if the dress was different. The lace in this dress by Madeleine Vionnet (1938) was constructed from horsehair braid:
(Image from 'Vionnet' by Betty Kirke, 1991, Chronicle Books, San Francisco)
When I saw the following ad for Chanel haute couture in 1997, I did feel a slight sense of déjà vu. But then again, that's not uncommon when it comes to Lagerfeld's work. I know one lecturer who has built an entire lecture on literal use of inspiration around Lagerfeld's work for Chanel in the 80s.
Maybe it's pointless to make any value judgments on this; designer ethics are a very personal thing. I nevertheless feel compelled to point out the similarities, so there you go.
(Above images from style.com)They reminded me of a 1983 dress by Yves Saint Laurent, sometimes referred to as the sardine dress, in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. A dress that looks like this:
(Page 94 from 'Haute Couture' by Richard Martin and Harold Koda, published by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.)My educated guess would be that the sequin work would have been done by Lesage, and their archives probably are open to designers - does anyone know more about how that works? I am somewhat torn on this; on one hand, I think any designer championing the haute couture crafts of France deserves a pat on the back, and on the other, as a designer I would never use a source so literally. Not knowingly, anyway. I do recall one instance of pretty much copying the cut of a Miyake jacket in my final year; I realised what I'd done two days before the work was due and wanted to bin it. In the end I didn't after having chatted to my tutor, who probably thought all the tears were a bit of an over-reaction.
This reminds me of another instance of a contemporary designer using a constructed textile design pretty much as is, even if the dress was different. The lace in this dress by Madeleine Vionnet (1938) was constructed from horsehair braid:
(Image from 'Vionnet' by Betty Kirke, 1991, Chronicle Books, San Francisco)When I saw the following ad for Chanel haute couture in 1997, I did feel a slight sense of déjà vu. But then again, that's not uncommon when it comes to Lagerfeld's work. I know one lecturer who has built an entire lecture on literal use of inspiration around Lagerfeld's work for Chanel in the 80s.
Maybe it's pointless to make any value judgments on this; designer ethics are a very personal thing. I nevertheless feel compelled to point out the similarities, so there you go.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Rachael Cassar at Estethica S/S 2010 at LFW
Rachael Cassar is a friend and a former student, who is showing at Estethica as part of London Fashion Week for the first time. Rachael won the Media Prize of the Australian final of the 2006 Lancôme Colour Design Awards (another staff member and I did an all-nighter with the students for that - there was definitely something comical about trying to ensure the cleaners wouldn't vacuum the sequins off the floor at 5am...) and she was the overall winner of Mittelmoda in 2007. At Estethica, there are at least two other Aussies listed: Mark Liu, an Estethica veteran, and Bird Textiles. Rachel Bending from Bird Textiles was one of the speakers at the Fashioning Now symposium.
I was fortunate enough to attend the launch of Rachael's latest collection Ruby at the Belvoir St Theatre. Trade shows can be pretty harrowing so best of luck to all three, and Rachael, I reckon it's a good omen the wheel on your suitcase broke at the airport :) Rachael works with secondhand garments and fabrics, reworking them - much of the work is done by hand - into new, beautiful things.
Images from Ruby by Rachael Cassar 2009 (currently waiting on credits).
I was fortunate enough to attend the launch of Rachael's latest collection Ruby at the Belvoir St Theatre. Trade shows can be pretty harrowing so best of luck to all three, and Rachael, I reckon it's a good omen the wheel on your suitcase broke at the airport :) Rachael works with secondhand garments and fabrics, reworking them - much of the work is done by hand - into new, beautiful things.
Images from Ruby by Rachael Cassar 2009 (currently waiting on credits).
Sam Formo's zero-waste jacket
Sam Formo's name has come up here a few times and I was fortunate enough to see the photos of this jacket quite a while ago. I didn't want to post any photos earlier, in case doing so might have compromised Sam's chances of entering any competitions, which I'm glad he did do: the Metropolis Next Generation competition. The results are in, and Sam was commended as one of twelve notables. Congratulations! Feel free to disagree but I think that not too long ago fashion wouldn't have even got a look in, so this is fantastic. The photos came from Metropolis and Sam Formo; the photography is by Shidume Lozada (a CCA graduate) and the model is Drew Kleiner (a fellow fashion student):
From Metropolis, Sam's thoughts on the garments:
Back to the point of the post, some huge congratulations to Sam. If you have a look at the winner, the runners-up and the other notables like Sam, you'll notice that apart from one PhD candidate, none are students. (Please correct me if I'm wrong there; I am somewhat tired and slightly incoherent as I type this.) They are practicing architects, designers, engineers and the like. Congratulations!
From Metropolis, Sam's thoughts on the garments:I really think you'll be hearing and seeing a lot more of Sam and his excellent work. I'd also like to mention a person 'behind the scenes' who doesn't get credited enough. Lynda Grose, one of Sam's professors at the California College of the Arts, has been a pioneer in the field of fashion design and sustainability and worked with Sam on this project. To my horror, I recently read one 'history' or review of sustainable fashion to date, and it made no mention of Lynda (nor Kate Fletcher, or Becky Earley, and so it went) or the ecollection she helped develop for Esprit, what, almost two decades ago. That's kind of like writing a history of Western fashion and not mentioning France. Lynda also worked with Andrew Hague, whose no-waste shirt Fletcher featured in her book (Andrew features it on his website).
How would you describe it?
The no-waste pattern was developed in order to eliminate cutting waste that generally ends up in landfills. By filling in the negative spaces in order to utilize all of the fabric laid out and by sharing cutting lines, a garment emerges leaving behind not a scrap of waste.
How does it pertain to energy?
By eliminating waste and creating timeless designs we decrease the need for consumption, which in turn saves the energy embodied in the cloth, decreases the need to transport it from disposal to landfill and overseas to clothing brokers.
What makes it important?
I realize that my entry is completely non-traditional in terms of what Metropolis magazine puts forth, but I stand by my design because I am a true believer that thinking in these terms, no matter from what standpoint, is crucial in our current quandary. My piece is an accessible concept that is structural, durable and beautiful and much like architecture provides a function that involves the body. The issues that it can possibly address globally reach far beyond what many other forms of design can, such as the poor ethics that are being practiced in the textile and garment manufacturing industries, the amount of energy and waste occurring at alarming rates and the no-end of health risks involved thereof. Clothing is as much part of our lives as the buildings we live and work in and current times are calling for massive change and re-invention. There is no reason that fashion should not be part of that change.
How do the photos or renderings illustrate the concept?
The pattern is laid out exactly as it would on cloth. When laid out properly, especially on something like a wool melton or boiled wool, it can be situated so that; a) it takes up the entire width of a piece of yardage and b) can be laid out so that it utilizes less than one yard. The types of fabrics researched for this project were sought because of the quality and inability to fray, meaning that cut edges do not have to be finished (thus saving the extra energy it would take to run a machine). Each and every part of the pattern is utilized and put into the finished garment, the interlocked puzzle-like pieces on the front are pulled through buttonholes, creating the closure for the jacket and also becoming a unique design feature. The photos tell the story of how those pieces come to life when put on the body.
Back to the point of the post, some huge congratulations to Sam. If you have a look at the winner, the runners-up and the other notables like Sam, you'll notice that apart from one PhD candidate, none are students. (Please correct me if I'm wrong there; I am somewhat tired and slightly incoherent as I type this.) They are practicing architects, designers, engineers and the like. Congratulations!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
the hoodie - an attempt to explain
I feel very humbled by and grateful for having been featured on three prominent blogs over the last few days. Kathleen Fasanella from Fashion Incubator (you need her book!) posted the hoodie as a Pattern Puzzle, Danielle Meder from Final Fashion posted her very good go at it, and Outi of Outsapop wrote a post on zero-waste fashion. Thank you, and more importantly, thank you each for your blogs!
I realise that the pattern diagram for the hoodie isn't particularly helpful - even when you see the photo. Had I included a couple of crucial notches in the diagram (they are on the actual pattern, obviously), it would be much easier to 'read'. For example, the CB seam isn't joined all the way through to the top of the 'triangle'; the hood triangle gets inserted into the 'split' that results:
There is a partially stitched inverted pleat at the CF edge of the hood. I had a set length measurement available for the facing that faces the entire CF and hood edge (see the diagram), and I used the pleat to make the edge match the facing. Although cut perfectly to match, I fumbled the stripes whilst sewing; they are out by about 2mm. If any of my students are reading this, this is where you stop, unpick and resew. At the time I was probably too buggered to even notice:
The hood triangle, perhaps counter-intuitively, goes around the triangle point where the CF and CB of the body meet rather than match to it. The hood keeper controls the area and creates a look that's more hat- than hood-like when the hood is on the head:
About the sleeves and 'armholes'. The slash at the top back (the one that does have a notch marked) is the armhole; the sleeve is inserted from the notch to the end of the slash. I am realising quickly that I am not very good at explaining this verbally or with photographs, but in the photo below you can see the CB and parts of the sleeves inserted into the slashes:
The sleeves are cut on the straight grain but hang on bias, with the one seam spiraling around the arm, Vionnet-style. The mismatched grains at CF and CB were the intention from the word go, creating all sorts of havoc throughout the fittings. I think I made three toiles (or muslins) and even now, the final garment doesn't fit quite as well as I'd like it to.
The back waist has an internal elastic casing inserted into the lower slash. The hems are quite deep (4" or 10cm). I mitred the corners by simply folding and hiding the folds inside the hem:
Although there are lots of large eyelets available now, thanks to Givenchy (I predicted it here), I decided to get mine made by a very capable jewellery designer, George Plionis. In fine silver, these are thus far the most expensive eyelets I've ever worked with.
There are a number of things that would need addressing before this could be taken to manufacture, primarily to do with the hood and the facing. As for (hypothetical) sales (this garment, and all others, was made purely for research and exhibition), most guys I spoke with liked the front but not the heavily gathered back waist. I also debated whether to put tucks into the shoulder area which would have prevented the garment falling off the shoulders so much. The tucks were marked on the original pattern but in the end I left them out. Back in 1982, Vivienne Westwood said about the Buffalo collection: "There's more to clothes than just comfort. Even if they're not quite comfortable and slip and have to be readjusted now and again, I don't mind, because that's some sort of display and gesture that belongs with the clothes." Reflecting on that at whatever hour I might have been sewing the hoodie, I decided to leave the tucks out.
Any questions about the hoodie, don't hesitate to ask. I do find it quite difficult to explain the cut, and it's not a particularly complex garment.
I realise that the pattern diagram for the hoodie isn't particularly helpful - even when you see the photo. Had I included a couple of crucial notches in the diagram (they are on the actual pattern, obviously), it would be much easier to 'read'. For example, the CB seam isn't joined all the way through to the top of the 'triangle'; the hood triangle gets inserted into the 'split' that results:
There is a partially stitched inverted pleat at the CF edge of the hood. I had a set length measurement available for the facing that faces the entire CF and hood edge (see the diagram), and I used the pleat to make the edge match the facing. Although cut perfectly to match, I fumbled the stripes whilst sewing; they are out by about 2mm. If any of my students are reading this, this is where you stop, unpick and resew. At the time I was probably too buggered to even notice:
The hood triangle, perhaps counter-intuitively, goes around the triangle point where the CF and CB of the body meet rather than match to it. The hood keeper controls the area and creates a look that's more hat- than hood-like when the hood is on the head:
About the sleeves and 'armholes'. The slash at the top back (the one that does have a notch marked) is the armhole; the sleeve is inserted from the notch to the end of the slash. I am realising quickly that I am not very good at explaining this verbally or with photographs, but in the photo below you can see the CB and parts of the sleeves inserted into the slashes:
The sleeves are cut on the straight grain but hang on bias, with the one seam spiraling around the arm, Vionnet-style. The mismatched grains at CF and CB were the intention from the word go, creating all sorts of havoc throughout the fittings. I think I made three toiles (or muslins) and even now, the final garment doesn't fit quite as well as I'd like it to.The back waist has an internal elastic casing inserted into the lower slash. The hems are quite deep (4" or 10cm). I mitred the corners by simply folding and hiding the folds inside the hem:
Although there are lots of large eyelets available now, thanks to Givenchy (I predicted it here), I decided to get mine made by a very capable jewellery designer, George Plionis. In fine silver, these are thus far the most expensive eyelets I've ever worked with.
There are a number of things that would need addressing before this could be taken to manufacture, primarily to do with the hood and the facing. As for (hypothetical) sales (this garment, and all others, was made purely for research and exhibition), most guys I spoke with liked the front but not the heavily gathered back waist. I also debated whether to put tucks into the shoulder area which would have prevented the garment falling off the shoulders so much. The tucks were marked on the original pattern but in the end I left them out. Back in 1982, Vivienne Westwood said about the Buffalo collection: "There's more to clothes than just comfort. Even if they're not quite comfortable and slip and have to be readjusted now and again, I don't mind, because that's some sort of display and gesture that belongs with the clothes." Reflecting on that at whatever hour I might have been sewing the hoodie, I decided to leave the tucks out.Any questions about the hoodie, don't hesitate to ask. I do find it quite difficult to explain the cut, and it's not a particularly complex garment.
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